*** Official iPad 2 Launch Thread and other things announced on 3/2/11 ***

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Patranus

Diamond Member
Apr 15, 2007
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Have they announced any upgrades to the UI or the addition of widgets? I might be interested in a tablet but I'd prefer something with at least a somewhat modern looking interface.

Doubt iOS gets any of that until WWDC/iOS 5 if ever.
 

akugami

Diamond Member
Feb 14, 2005
5,959
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hrm ... so now 4.3 lets you turn your iPhone into a hotspot just w/the OS? that seems like that could really piss verizon off since that is a feature they make you pay for ... maybe the blog i read was wrong?

This brings the feature to all iPhones since Verizon's version of the iphone was the first iPhone with it. Don't expect it to be free on AT&T's network either.

It does look like it has some nice features, but some of it is just BS. $40 for an HDMI dongle? WTF? I also don't like the way it seems like they are attacking the android market rather than competing with it. Feels shady to me.

Get ready for the $10 knockoffs that work just as well from the usual suspects who sell $3 iPod connector cables. But $40 is excessive.
 

FrontlineWarrior

Diamond Member
Apr 19, 2000
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does anyone care about imovie or these instrument apps? guess you have to fill in the time when your OS still looks like it's from 2007
 

akugami

Diamond Member
Feb 14, 2005
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I didn't mean physically, I meant the specs. Dual-core cpu, two cameras, hdmi out etc. Very similar specs to the xoom.

Well, from that perspective I don't really see the Xoom as anything special either. There's a whole slew of Android tablets coming out with dual core ARM CPU's, two cameras, likely HDMI out, etc. You'd have to name every Android tablet coming out a Xoom knockoff if that's the case. I'm not saying the iPad 2 is raising the standard above any of the Android tablets announced but I don't see it as being a copy of the Xoom either. It merely matches other tablets coming out in 2011.
 

dpodblood

Diamond Member
May 20, 2010
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Get ready for the $10 knockoffs that work just as well from the usual suspects who sell $3 iPod connector cables. But $40 is excessive.

Go monoprice! :D I will say though, the accessories are expensive, but the base price is a hellava lot more competitive than other Android tablets.
 

dguy6789

Diamond Member
Dec 9, 2002
8,558
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I didn't mean physically, I meant the specs. Dual-core cpu, two cameras, hdmi out etc. Very similar specs to the xoom.

That is a natural progression of specs. It would be like saying HP is copying Dell because Dell recently released a computer with the new Sandybridge processor and now HP is releasing one.
 

finbarqs

Diamond Member
Feb 16, 2005
3,617
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i guess the ipad 2 (or any apple gadget device) isn't really focused on the hardware. All they do is make it look really nice, and feel very touch quality. But where it shines is the software. How it runs like it's a VERY high powered device. So it's less about specs, but more about user experience, which is really the bottom line.
 

senseamp

Lifer
Feb 5, 2006
35,787
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Isn't equivalently equipped iPad $70 more than Xoom once you add SD card reader and HDMI out?
 

akugami

Diamond Member
Feb 14, 2005
5,959
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Isn't equivalently equipped iPad $70 more than Xoom once you add SD card reader and HDMI out?

Only if you care about HDMI or want a card reader. Most won't.

*EDIT*

Scratch that. After a closer look the Xoom holds no major advantage. The 32GB Xoom is $799 for 3G version (upgradeable to 4G). The 32GB iPad 2 with 3G is $729. Add in the HDMI cable and a card reader and it's mostly a wash in regards to pricing.
 
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finbarqs

Diamond Member
Feb 16, 2005
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actually, I do want to know what kind of resolution the screen has, and is it an IPS panel? and what are the specs for the cameras?
 

aphex

Moderator<br>All Things Apple
Moderator
Jul 19, 2001
38,572
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actually, I do want to know what kind of resolution the screen has, and is it an IPS panel? and what are the specs for the cameras?

Its gonna be IPS and the same res screen, no word on the cameras yet.
 

tdawg

Platinum Member
May 18, 2001
2,215
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Same OS = no interest from me. If none of the alternatives (Honeycomb, WebOS, Blackberry) meet/beat the iPad in price, then I'm just out of the tablet game. I have no interest in staring at endless grids of icons with a ton of dead/negative space on the screen. Give me the ability to view essential information at a glance without having to open one app for my calendar, another app for my mail, etc, and you start piquing my interest.

Bumped specs for the same user experience is pointless to me. Apple, stop making the devices thinner and start paying attention to updating the OS.

Also, Microsoft had wireless syncing with Zune from very early on, so Apple shouldn't receive any special praise for bringing this feature to iTunes, but they will by all the press, of course.
 

MagickMan

Diamond Member
Aug 11, 2008
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does anyone care about imovie or these instrument apps? guess you have to fill in the time when your OS still looks like it's from 2007

At least it doesn't crash every 5 minutes and you don't have to force quit apps constantly. I want a nice UI too, but it better be stable.
 

finbarqs

Diamond Member
Feb 16, 2005
3,617
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they haven't mention anything on the screen resolution yet in regards to that ips panel. but it does look like an ips panel by the different angles the video portrays the ipad 2.
 

aphex

Moderator<br>All Things Apple
Moderator
Jul 19, 2001
38,572
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they haven't mention anything on the screen resolution yet in regards to that ips panel. but it does look like an ips panel by the different angles the video portrays the ipad 2.

The original was IPS, so i dunno why if they are keeping the same res it wouldn't be.
 

BigSmooth

Lifer
Aug 18, 2000
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does anyone care about imovie or these instrument apps? guess you have to fill in the time when your OS still looks like it's from 2007
I don't own any Apple products, but I've played with the desktop version of GarageBand before and it is far more than an "instrument app". Some people won't care, but I can see a lot of added value there for musicians who want to have something portable and easy to use for musical "sketching".